FARMERS’ WILLINGNESS TO PURCHASE DROUGHT INSURANCE IN THE VOLTA REGION OF GHANA
ABIGAIL AMPOMAH ADAKU *
Department of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness, University of Ghana, College of Basic and Applied Sciences, P.O.Box Lg 68, Legon, Accra, Ghana.
THEOPHILUS AHIATI
Department of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness, University of Ghana, College of Basic and Applied Sciences, P.O.Box Lg 68, Legon, Accra, Ghana.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Agriculture is known to be prone to risks and uncertainties which delay production, reduce yield and cause total loss of crops at the worst. These risks and uncertainties have increased in view of the current trends in climate. This paper examines farmers’ willingness to purchase drought insurance as a mitigation strategy against risks and uncertainties. One hundred (100) farmers were surveyed from the Volta region of Ghana and the responses analysed using contingent valuation. The findings showed that about 78% of the farmers had never heard of agricultural insurance. About 68% of the farmers had a seasonal cost of production of about GHS100 to GHS300. Eighty- seven percent (87%) were willing to purchase drought insurance at the premium of GHS10 to GHS 25. The minimum premium rate in the insurance scheme is 10% of the production cost. The paper therefore recommends to the Ghana Agricultural Insurance Programme of Ministry of Food and Agriculture to educate and sensitise farmers on the insurance scheme for maximum patronage.
Keywords: Index- based insurance, Ghana, drought